


Blood

by yolkyeomie



Category: K-pop, NCT (Band), WayV (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Not K-Pop Idols, Alternate Universe - Spies & Secret Agents, Cameos, Gen, Mentioned Other K-pop Artist(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-07
Updated: 2019-12-14
Packaged: 2020-04-06 17:02:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 22,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19066876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yolkyeomie/pseuds/yolkyeomie
Summary: ten has his own problems to deal with, but a little espionage won’t hurt





	1. Runaway

An alarm rang loud in his ears, the ringing resonating in his head. It gave him a headache, but he decided to ignore it for now. Headaches could wait a few more minutes until Ten was in a stable situation. He was running down a street as fast as his legs could take him, forcing himself to keep on pushing. If he stopped, he was definitely done for. Unlike many people of this generation, he wanted to live a little longer.

A gunshot sounded behind him and a bulletproof pierced the wall beside him. It was close, but not close enough to end his life. A smirk grew on his face as he turned around, running backwards so that he was still on the move. Behind him was a former ally, dressed in a expensive black suit and a gun in his hands. He aimed the weapon towards Ten once more, trying to make sure he actually hit him this time. "Aw, poor you! You were never able to land a hit on me could you, Jaehyun?"

His mocking wasn't taken slightly. The gun shot a bullet once more and Ten tumbled out of the way so that he wasn't hurt. Thankfully he was a lot more agile then his former ally could ever wish. "Stand still and this will be over before you know it." Jaehyun growled, an annoyed expression dawning his face. He dug in his pocket for ammunition and the boy took that as his cue to keep on running.

"I'd love to play follow the leader, but there are other games I want to play." Ten told him, bowing to him as he sprinted away down the street again. The gunman yelled his name, the pure anger evident in his voice as he went to chase after him. He spotted an alleyway close by and grinned to himself. If he could lose Jaehyun in the confusing twists and turns of the alley he'd be free for another day. Of course he'd have to make sure he didn't try that again another day though.

Ten skidded to a stop when he saw someone take a few steps in front of him, blocking him off from the rest of the street. He fell to the ground after trying to stop himself from colliding with the suited up man that stood in his way. "Oh hi, Johnny." He greeted, scrambling to his feet as quickly as he could. "It must really tear you apart to try and kill me right? We were like... best friends." He spoke, backing up as he tried to find a way to escape his current situation.

"We wouldn't have to kill you if you just stopped running." Johnny frowned, closing in on him so that he'd be forced to back away. Ten followed along, unfortunately not finding a way out as quickly as he hoped. He heard a gun cock, and spun on his heel to see that Jaehyun and his pistol was right behind him. "Chittaphon, I promise I won't let Jaehyun kill you if you just do as we say and return back to the HQ." 

Ten snorted, glaring boy who dared to call him by his real name. "I don't think I should really be listening to the guy who sold me out to the rest of the gang." He turned his gaze towards Jaehyun, as he was the one who was the most dangerous at the moment. The former ally's fingers hovered over the trigger, his eyes holding no sympathy for him despite once being on the same side. Ten grabbed Jaehyun's wrist, catching him off guard and throwing off his aim. He grinned as he poked the boy in the eyes, trying to hold back a laugh.

Jaehyun gasped, dropping the weapon and tumbling back from the sudden attack. Ten waved off to the two former alleys. "Oops, might want to get his eyes checked. I think I poked them pretty hard." He snickered, beginning his sprint to safety towards the alleyway he saw earlier. Johnny stood there shocked at the childish trick he pulled, which in turn earned him an annoyed tone from Jaehyun.

Ten didn't even bother looking back, needing a place to hide for the day. It's been like this for the past month or two, him constantly being on the run as he tried to escape the city but being pushed back inside it by the gang he was running from. The gang new the city like the back of their hand, they had eyes everywhere. No matter how close he had gotten to freedom, someone had always sold him out and they'd pull him right back in. That's because they knew if Ten got out of the gang controlled city then he'd practically disappear off of their radar.

He used to be apart of the gang, NCT it is called while being widely known as the NEO to the locals. They were all powerful, they ran the city as if they were the kings and god did it feel good. The mere thought of having all those people under your control and making profit of it was enough to make people want to join. Ten was born into it thankfully, both his parents were apart of the gang yet usually worked outside of the city. But he knew that if he wanted to make a fortune, he'd have to go to the heart of the gang.

Yet most of the people he met along the way were only coworkers to him except for maybe a few. Ten didn't get close to any one but his little posey, but clearly that ended up being a bad idea. The day he decided he was going to take more than he was given, take what he believed he deserved, they betrayed him. Or at least he knew for a fact that Johnny betrayed him. He had caught Ten in the act of stealing an awfully large amount of money from current gang leader.

He was truly a little snitch, telling the gang leader when Ten had decided to steal and where. Now there was a possibly big bounty on his head for him dead or alive and the entire gang is after him. He liked to think he was quite special if the current gang leader decided that everyone had to search for him. Though Ten didn't enjoy having to sleep with one eye open every night. Who knew when someone was going to stab him in the back, literally, when he wasn't paying attention?

He slowed his pace down when he saw that he alley way he discovered earlier was coming to a dead end. Barbed wire fence stood in his way, looming over him and daring him to try and get over. "Are you kidding me?" Ten mumbled, crossing his arms as he turned to dash the way he came. However he heard footsteps come his way, cautious and light like they were trying to sneak up on him. "Well shit." He hissed, facing the fence once again with a conflicted face.

"I don't have enough energy for this!" He groaned as he grabbed onto the fence, putting his focus into jumping it to get to the other side. Yet the top of the fence looked dangerous, even scaring Ten despite having stared death in the face countless times. What would happen once he got the top? That's where all barbed wire was, it was there to stop people from jumping it after all.

What if he got caught on some of the wire? Would it start a chain reaction and he end up getting caught on the rest of them? He'd get slowed down and harmed in the process! Ten took a deep breath, shaking off all the jitters that kept creeping up on him. "Come on Ten. Your life quite literally depends on this." He told himself as he began the climb.

There were a few times he took a misstepped, slipping on the cold wire that tried to keep him out. He continuously shook it off, refusing to back down from the challenge he had himself take. Ten had eventually reached the top, coming face to face with the barbed wire he had dreaded facing. "Hi buddy, how you doing? Mind if I get by?" He muttered, grabbing onto the metal that wasn't covered in dangerous wire.

He heaved himself up, trying his best not to hurt himself. Though he felt his arms get nicked by some of the barbed wire he was unable to get past. Ten refused to make a sound, not wanting to the pain to get the best of him. "What in the hell are you doing?" Jaehyun's voice sounded through the alleyway, catching him off guard. He fell off the fence yet thankfully landing on his feet. Is this way people compared to him to a cat so much? Because of his tendency to always land off his feet no matter what he did?

He turned around to face Johnny and Jaehyun, smirking as he shook the wired fence. "Can't climb a fence can you, you long bodied bitch!" Ten yelled, though directing towards the giant of a man that rattled him out. The gang members groaned, trying to find a way around the fence than come to conclusion that he had. He watched them struggle as he backed away, getting out scot free once more. "Can't wait for our cat and mouse game tomorrow! Next time, why don't you be the mouse instead?" 

Jaehyun groaned, scrambling around for what Ten could assume was his weapon of choice. Johnny only watched him walk away, a frustrated expression on his face. The boy didn't care what was going on his head though. He only stuck out his tongue at them before dashing away for his life. Ten didn't even know why those two bothered anymore, it was clear that no matter how hard they tried he'd always come out victorious and free.

He didn't stop running till he knew was far enough from his former allies, not wanting to give them a chance to attack. Ten let himself collapse onto the ground, catching his breath from the all the running he was doing. If he didn't have any sort of muscle on him by the time he was actually caught and sent to this deathbed he was going to throw a fit. He was getting a lot of exercise from his daily escapee shenanigans. Ten should have a 16-pack by now.

He sat up to take in his surroundings, trying to find out exactly where he was. Ten had never been in this area before, but he was forced to run this way thanks to Jaehyun having the nose a bloodhound. All of the locations he did know of was also territory that the gang member knew awfully well. So he had to go somewhere where not even he knew, to which he ended up to what seemed like a storage facility. It was dark and gloomy in this area, abandoned and ghost town like.

No one really had property to themselves when NCT was always one step ahead of you. Because of that, no one had a reason to even come to the facility. It just made this game of hide and sneak even easier for Ten. He'd have a place to stay until he needed to move again. He stood back up off the ground, stretched out his legs and arms so that he wouldn't be stiff. Stiffness would cost his life after all.

"Alright, what do you have for me." He spoke, beginning to walk around to take a look at the place. Any hidden cameras in the facility that were still lingering around had to be taken down. If they caught Ten on tap then the gang would come straight for him. All he really wants at the moment is just go to sleep without possibility of waking up in hell the next day.

That’s when he heard it, multiple gunshots coming from a warehouse near his current location. Ten was ready to book it out of there, immediately thinking that it was the gang who has found him. But there wasn’t any footsteps, nor was there any sign of another person in his current area. Wherever those gunshots came from, it wasn’t from someone after him. Something else was happening behind the scenes, and he couldn’t help but stick his nose into the trouble.

He shrugged his shoulders, following where he believed the gunshots came from. “A little trouble won’t hurt right? If it’s not for me then I can make it my business.” Ten told himself, disappearing into the warehouses. He was pulling his luck here, not knowing how much longer he’d be able to keep up his streak of escaping after this. But just because he had a bounty on his head didn’t mean he couldn’t have a bit of fun... right?


	2. Biker Boy

Ten hid behind the wall of a warehouse, his heart pounding at least a million times per second now. He had heard gunshots earlier, louder this time. While it wasn't aimed towards him, the mere sound of a gun made him want to start running. You never know where his former allies were hiding, so he had to be on high alert. Yet Ten didn't want to let the gang dictate what he could and couldn't do, so he continued to press on despite his worries.

However he couldn't proceed like he wanted to even though he was close to his goal now. He had heard the sound of engine nearby, alerting the surrounding area of its presence. Ten wasn't sure if it was someone from his former gang that had arrived or not but he didn't want to find out. He needed a way to leave his current position without warning the newcomer of his presence. That was a little hard though, as either he run into the open or face the electric fence that surrounded the city to keep him in.

He is, undoubtedly, stuck in a sticky situation. "If you run fast enough then they won't see you. But you also have no idea where this stranger is." Ten mumbled, peering from behind the wall to see what was out there. The gate that surrounded his destination was wide open, the door to the warehouse lifted up just a little bit. At least he knew someone was definitely inside the warehouse now, but that's just pointing out the obvious.

He spotted a motorcycle speeding down the road, carelessly making quick and dangerous turns as if the driver didn't care about their life. Ten's eyes were practically glued onto motorcycle as it came closer to where he was located. It definitely was the noise from earlier, but it wasn't anyone he knew. His former allies were more into sports cars, but even then they wouldn't dare drive so recklessly. This was truly a stranger Ten had never seen before, and it caught his interest.

They zoomed right past him and skidded to a stop in front of the warehouse he was trying to reach. Dust flew into the air as they stopped and the screeching of the tires coming to a stop rung loudly in his ears. He took a few steps away from his hiding place to get a good look at the biker who dared to make so much noise in a city run entirely by a gang. The biker took off the helmet that hid his face, taking a breath of fresh air after inhaling all gaseous smell from his motorcycle.

His helmet hair was horrible but he wore it well somehow. He stepped off the bike and Ten could immediately spot a few weapons wrapped around his belt. "A dangerous man at a dangerous scene. How to intriguing is that?" He mumbled, watching as biker left his motorcycle out in the open and walk through the unlocked gate. Ten scrambled after him, thankful that he didn't have to walk by himself. If anything happened and he was greeted by a trap, the biker boy would be caught in it instead.

The biker stopped in front of the door, grabbing the handle at the bottom and lifting it up so he could slip through. Ten watched from a distance, not wanting to be seen or heard by the stranger. He wondered what businesses had with this warehouse? Was he from a rival gang that was conspiring against the ruling one? That wouldn't be possible, he was sure that his former allies would have taken out any gangs that were against them. Their influence and power would be able to overwhelm anyone in their way.

Ten would have followed after the stranger as he entered the warehouse, but him walking the same exact path would be suspicious. He looked up and spotted a window above him, the glass panes shattered and broken. It was just big enough for him to fit through though, so he decided that would be his entrance to the warehouse. He could only hope that where the shattered window was, a hard surface could he found under it. Falling to his doom wasn't on his agenda today.

He took a few steps back, shaking off any jitters that tried to stop him. "You can run from a gang, climb a barbed fence, and refuse to walk into death's home. You sure as hell can jump through a window." Ten hyped himself up, rubbing his hands on his legs. He didn't want to lose his grip on the window if he was actually able to reach. He didn't like the thought of falling at all really. Maybe this was a bad idea.

"Screw it, I've got luck on my side anyways!" Ten yelled, a grin on his face as he got a running start towards the window. He jumped at the last minute, the floor below him as he desperately tried to ready for something to grab on. The boy almost didn't make it, just barely missing the window sill and latching onto a ledge just below it. Ten let out loud sigh of relief, dangling above the ground as he forced himself up. "I'm... never going to do that again! I felt like Johnny just getting that high!"

He slung himself over the ledge and slipped through the shattered window, tumbling onto the ground. Ten held in a scream of victory as he felt the mezzanine floor under him. He was just high enough to be out of the biker boy's sight or anyone else's that may be inside. "Being short doesn't mean I can't jump... good to know." He mumbled as he stood up again, finding his balance as he began to scan the area around him for the stranger from earlier.

For the most part all he could see were giant transportation crates stacked on top of each other and scattered throughout the warehouse. Forklifts could be spotted here and there, though most of them were probably in the garages they were supposed to be returned to. In the middle of the messy warehouse was a group men, surrounding someone strapped to a chair and held at gun point. Ten's eyes were gleaming at this point, finding interest in this sudden scene in front of him.

He spotted biker boy walking towards the group and Ten began to travel the mezzanine as quietly as he could to get a better look at what was happening. The group of men were dressed in black suits, black masks and shades covering up their faces so they couldn't be identified. "So, you came like we asked." The leader of the group spoke up, stepping in front of the person strapped in the chair. The sound of chains jingling throughout the warehouse as the person squirmed in place.

"No one asked you to come. I could have handled this on my own." The person in the chair stated, struggling to free himself. Though he stopped when the men stepped towards him, making security around him tighter. The leader of the group held up a file in his hands, the words CLASSIFIED stamped in bright red on the front. The biker boy stopped in his tracks, holding his hands up and refusing to use any of the weapons he had on him.

The leader of the group took a few steps towards the biker boy, his other hand reaching for something in his pocket. "You brought what we wanted correct?" He asked, stopping right in front of the stranger as he spoke. "I mean, you can't come to a ransom empty handed. You want your information and boy back? You give us the money. So hand it over." The leader demanded, holding out his hand so he could receive whatever amount of cash he asked for.

"What the hell is he doing?" Ten mumbled, narrowing his eyes at the biker boy. "He's stacked with weaponry, just fight them and go." He turned to his side to see someone not too far away from him on the mezzanine. There was two people actually, one sitting on the ground and tinkering with a drone while the other was standing beside and watching. The boy working on the drone had grabbed a controller and began fiddling with the control pad, watching as the drone came to lift and begin to hover.

The person beside him pointed out one of the men below them and the drone man nodded. He sat up and leaned up against the railing, sending the machine down towards their desired target. He seemed as though he was aiming something at the group of men, but he couldn't tell what. Ten took a few steps back, trying his best to say hidden from their sight as well. His eyes scanned the warehouse for any other people and was able to spot a sniper hidden carefully between the many crates in the room. "What the hell did I walk in on."

"Give me my money or your information and the boy won't see the light of day." The leader demanded, urging his men to back him up. The Biker boy sighed, a defeated look on his face as he reached behind his back. The stranger never entered the storage unit with anything. All he had was a motorcycle and his mere presence. He was fooling the leader of the group since he had all this backup placed around the warehouse in case things got ugly.

The biker boy nodded to the boy strapped in the chair before frowning at the leader. "Okay, you won." He stated, pushing the man back and away from him. Ten's eyes darted over towards the hostage, his eyes widened when a sudden explosion erupted through the warehouse. It wasn't a big enough blast to destroy the building but it was enough to give everyone a shock. The people who stood too close were blown away into the walls while the boy in the chair simply braced himself for the impact.

The leader turned around in confusion, left lost by the sudden blast. The biker boy pulled out a gun, finger on the trigger as he pressed it into his enemy's back. The snipper Ten had spotted earlier sounded off and in the blink of an eye two men had dropped to the floor. The drone zoomed overhead, speeding towards one of the men that had been blown away by the explosion and snatched up what looked like keys. A boy that was hidden by the crates received the drone and grabbed the keys, thanking the machine for its assistance and walking over towards the boy who has been strapped to a chair.

"This was.... a trap?" The leader hissed, slowly raising his hands with the documents clenched tightly in his fists. All the people who has taken part in the sudden ambush came towards Biker boy, a smug look on all of their faces as they reunited with one another. "You dirty rat. We made a deal! My money for everything you wanted. I knew I shouldn't have trusted agents, you're nothing but untruthful and lying scumbags." He cursed, truly frustrated by his defeat.

"Well maybe you should have checked me before ruling me out as innocent." The boy who had been strapped to a chair stated. His hair was disheveled and his face and back was covered in black ash. He dusted himself off as he held a trigger tightly in his hands, it must have caused the explosion from earlier. "You should also check your men, it was extremely to slap a bomb on them. They really don't care about their appearance do they?"

"Xiaojun." One of them spoke, sending a glare towards the said boy. The ex-hostage sheepishly laughed, stepping away from the leader of the men to stand behind someone else. The person who seemed like the leader cleared his throat and snatched the documents from his hands. "You are now under the custody of Branch V for kidnapping, attempting ransoms, and stealing highly important documents from us. No, you don't get a lawyer."

Ten was so into the scene in front of him he didn't even notice that someone else was on the mezzanine still. Though it wasn't anyone he'd consider an ally. Especially not when they covered his mouth, and placed him a chokehold. At first he was sure that his former allies had caught him, that his luck with running away from his former gang had finally run out. Though he didn't feel the familiar energy he got from the rest of the gang, so it wasn't anyone he knew.

"Back away from the boss! Or the civilian gets hurt!" They shouted, threatening the group below them with Ten. He was more offended by the fact that this random grunt called him a civilian. Him? A former high ranking gang member? Being reduced to a civilian? It was more humiliating than being caught by Jaehyun and Johnny honestly! The boy jabbed the man on the stomach with his elbow, turning to glare daggers at him.

"Civilian? I'll have you know I've done far more things in my life... than be a civilian!" He hissed, struggling to escape the man's grasp. The man refused to let up as he pulled out a pocket knife pointing it at Ten as a threat. He pressed blade into his neck, showing no mercy to him and ready to kill the former gang member if it meant freeing his own leader. These people must not be from this city, they'd know fully well who Ten was and would only let the gang handle him.

The leader of the group let out a sigh, turning to the boy who held a sniper in his hands. "Hendery, please get this over with as fast as you can. I'm already tried of this city and it's only been an hour or so since we've been here." The said boy nodded, setting up his gun to get a quick and easy kill. The leader narrowed his eyes at Ten and added on,"Just make sure not to hit the civilian. I don't want this city's criminal justice system after us."


	3. Silver Hair

Ten sat on the rooftop of a abandoned apartment, staring off at the endless night sky without a star in sight. Why is it that every time he looked up to the sky, there wasn't a shiny little dot up there waiting for him? If he hadn't been out of the city before, he probably would have no idea what a star even is. That's assuming he could even remember what those balls of light even looked like. It was unfortunate, a city that was used to bow down to him had never even witnessed a star before.

It had been a few days since he saw that mysterious group in the warehouse. He could remember a couple of them very vaguely, but definitely knew he heard them spout the name "Branch V" at one point. His instincts had told him to return to the gang and report to his leader on his findings. Thankfully, Ten had stopped himself before he could even get close to his former allies. He would have led himself straight to the enemy, and this whole cat and mouse game would be over.

His body was physical over being apart of the gang. His mind seemed as though it kept a tight hold on all the orders and commands that he had been taught. Ten kept trying to shake it off, as he could literally become the death of himself. However it's harder to get rid of old habits than he originally thought. He was just glad he was catching himself before it was too late. He and his former allies would be incredible shocked if he sudden came rushing into their headquarters spouting about some reports.

"You know... you're incredibly hard to find!" A voice spoke, making Ten jump. He turned around with gritted teeth, getting ready to dash away or defend himself if Jaehyun and Johnny had found him him again. Yet, he was greeted by someone completely new. They didn't have the familiarity he had with the previously stated boys. That didn't mean he was just going to let his guard down like that though. It could be someone working undercover for the gang, trying to get the reward money placed on him.

He narrowed his eyes at the two who had accompanied him. They didn't look very special, just some man with sliver-like hair and a hyperactive teenager. The teen gave him a wide and playful grin, as if he was just waiting for the adult to give him some type of validation. "Oh, it's just some old man and his grandkid." Ten stated, getting up off the ground so that he'd have an easier time to dash away. "Look if you're after the reward money, you're not gonna get it. I'll be gone as soon as you blink."

The sliver haired man seemed irritated by his words, growling out,"Old man? I'm only in my twenties what the hell do you mean?" He questioned, looking as though he was about to have an identity crisis. Both Ten and the teenager's eyes wandered over towards his hair, staring at the multiple sliver strands of hair on his head. "It's hair dye! Not grey hair, hair dye!  God I knew this was a bad idea when we came here again." He complained, crossing his arms in frustration.

"Came back?" Ten questioned, catching their attention. They both nodded in unison, not understanding why he was so confused. "That doesn't make sense, how did you come back? Or how did you even leave? No one can leave this city without knowing it well or somehow gaining the ruling gangs permission... Forget it, I'm wasting my time anyways. You're just stalling time so that they can catch me." He declared, spinning on his heel and walking towards the nearest ladder off the roof. The two who had found him seemed to start panicking, rushing after him.

"No, no! Don't leave yet!" The teenager exclaimed, grabbing his arm and pulling him back. "We won't hurt you, I promise! Hell we aren't even from this place! Kun just wants to talk that's all." He tried to convince him, holding on tightly to his arm. Ten's eyes glanced up in confusion, looking towards the sliver haired man he assumed was named Kun. He only shrugged, as if he didn't care about what was happening.

He simply grabbed the teen's hand and started walking away. "It's okay if he doesn't want to talk. We'll just report back to Branch V that he wouldn't get him. I honestly don't know why they sent us back here... isn't it dangerous to return to a mission location this earlier?" Kun spoke despite the teenager's protests. If the kid was any younger, he'd look like he was throwing a temper tantrum. 

"Wait Branch V?" Ten asked, his eyes practically scanning the two. "You must be... from the warehouse? Aren't you?" He questioned, catching their attention. Kun turned around with a smirk on his face, as if he just won the lottery. You could say he did, with the fact he was able to keep Ten still in one place for so long. Usually he'd be gone now in an attempt to keep himself alive, you never know where his gang hid.

Kun let go of the teen, shooting him away as he held out his hand. "I'm Agent Kun of Branch V, I'm glad you finally remembered our first meeting. I have... business to attend with you." He explained, urging Ten to shake his hand. The boy hesitated for a second, skeptical of what this silver haired boy's motives were. Yet with no regrets, he shook his hand and a mutual agreement to not harm each other was formed right then and there. It felt weird to him, having someone who was temporarily on his side.

"Go find something to do," He said, addressing the teenager who was watching them curiously from behind. "I'll let you know when you can come back and then we'll head out of the city. The grown ups are talking now." Kun ordered, turning around to give him a cheerful smile. The teen's mouth opened wide, his eyes practically popping out of his face like he couldn't believe what he was just told. Though when the smile didn't waver, he huffed and began making his way off the building.

The teen snorted at Kun as he yelled,"Okay! I get it! Next time I do something fun and childish I'll tell you the children are talking. Get a taste of your own medicine..." The two watched as the boy grumbled and groan, soon disappearing out of their sight. Ten's eyes lingering on the teenager's last position, as if he's trying to decide whether he's going to bring danger with him or not. Though his attention switched back to Kun when he heard him laugh.

"Don't worry about him, he can't even hurt a fly. He's not a danger to you not me." Kun explained, probably chuckling at the thought of the teen actually harming someone. Ten didn't know if he should believe him or go with gut feeling that the kid wasn't as harmless as he looked. Looks are very deceiving, he knows that from personal experience. "Now tell me, what do you remember from the warehouse?"

Ten had to think about it for a second, trying to recall any of the memories from that day. "I specifically remember being called a civilian, which is a personal blow to my very high ego." He told him, earning a smug look from the silver haired male. "On serious note, even though hits at my ego are very serious, I remember watching a ransom go haywire. I don't think explosions are supposed to be apart of the equation."

"That's because then we had to use our explosive expert as bait. He can put up an act very well, he looks weak but is the craziest out of all us." Kun grinned, sitting on the rooftops' edge as he spoke. He tapped the spot beside him, urging Ten to come. The boy gave the silver haired boy a skeptical look before finding himself staring out of nothing beside him. "Though, you're even crazier for deciding to sneak and watch us. That was a very secret mission you ended up walking in, how come no one even saw you."

"First all whoever is the idiot to shoot off gunshots that could cause an earthquake are the dumbest people on the planet." Ten began, taking shot and whoever had shot a gun that day. He got a laugh out of Kun, watching as the boy took full joy in his sarcastic jokes. Ten felt his skin crawl at the sight, though it wasn't because he didn't like listening to people find him funny. He felt.... too close. As if Kun was trying to grab at Ten right after he had dropped the only people he had called friends. 

He cleared his throat, trying to turn the conversation back to a serious note. "However, it was easy really. I've done... infiltration like that before, got years and years of sneaking in and out of places on me. But why do you want to know? We've only looked at each other once before now. What's so interesting about me?" Ten questioned, glancing at Kun to see how he'd reaction. The silver haired boy only huffed, digging for something in his pocket.

He pulled out a card of some sorts, handing to Ten to look at. "As you know, I'm apart of a organization called Branch V. We're a group of secret agents that take a multitude of different missions for get paid for it. Life threatening, but you get used to after awhile. Our boss has been looking into your situation for a long time now, something about an escapee from a mafia that over this city? He wants to strike a deal with you."

Ten frowned, staring at the card in his hands. It was a metallic V on the black card, the words special agent underneath the letter. They probably didn't carry this all the time, it would give away who they were and possibly be the cause of their death. Though the fact that those two boys came back to the gang controlled city just to get him made him a little skeptical of what they really wanted from him. He didn't get a chance to ask though, not when the two turned around to see the teenager from earlier rushing back onto the rooftop.

"I hope you did everything you needed to." He exclaimed, running over to Kun and grabbing his wrist. "We have to go, now! I called the branch for transportation and they'll be here soon. But we have to make sure we aren't in this area anymore." The silver haired boy was forced to his legs, trying to scold the teenager for being so forcefully and not understanding why he was in a rush. Ten got off the ground, glancing over the edge of the roof to see two people roaming the streets below.

"Oh fuck." He mumbled, immediately realizing who was below him. Ten's luck just didn't want to stick as it wasn't the dumb and dumber duo of Johnny and Jaehyun on the search for him today. It was his former boss and probably one of the deadliest men that used to be one of his former allies. "It's Taeyong and Yuta. If I stay here now I'm screwed." Ten mumbled, scrambling to his feet as he tried to get away while he can.

"If those two see you with me, they're going to try and kill you too. I'm a practically a felon in this city now." Ten explained, trying to get Kun and the teenager out of area. He knew how those two wouldn't care whether he was their friend at one point or not. Yuta used to be close to him, but he wouldn't hesitate to shed his blood now that he had went and betrayed the gang the way he did. And Taeyong? He was the one who put the damn bounty on him, he didn't care whether he was dead or alive if he ever was caught.

"Come with us," Kun explained, the faint sound of a helicopter flying beginning to ring in their ears. "I came here for a reason, I've been tasked to bring you to Branch V by the boss himself. You won't be hunted by them anymore if you join us." He offered, holding onto the teen as they waited for the helicopter to spot their current location. This was his chance, he could escape the gang after his head and be able to leave the city alive. It was tempting, but he knew there was so many things wrong with that.

"I've been trying to get out of this city for the past few months, but I can't." He told him, biting his lip as he spoke those words to Kun. "A helicopter is too obvious, they'll simply case after you and then you'll all be in danger because of me. I can't do that." A rope ladder dropped from the sky and the trio looked up to see their getaway right above him. The teenager didn't waste any time, climbing up the ladder as if his life depended on it.

Kun grabbed Ten’s wrist and pulled him over to the ladder. “I promise, I’ve been in far more dangerous situations than this. If they continue to chase after you or attempt to harm anyone I know, they’re dead. Trust me, you’re safer with us than you ever were here on your own with no allies to call your own.”


	4. Trust Me

Ten was drifting off into sleep, positioning his head on his hand to keep it up. It had been a rough ride trying to get the helicopter out the gang-controlled city, being chased down by almost everyone awake at that moment. He did have a bounty on him, and people wanted enough money to get out of the city for good. Capturing Ten dead or alive would give them enough to escape the hold the gang had on them. Or they could just do what he did and run for his life.

"Wake up," A youthful voice spoke, shaking him softly. "We're almost there, you can't fall asleep now." Ten groaned in response, rising his head up to see who was speaking to him. Though it was only the bright eyed teenager Kun had brought along with, probably doing whatever the older boy ordered. Ten narrowed his eyes at him, almost mistaking him for someone else. Loud and rambunctious.... taller than him....

"Where even are we?" He asked, sitting up as he slowly woke up. Kun was starting out the window of the helicopter and the teenager scrambled to his side, pressing his face up against the glass. Ten snorted at the sight assuming this must a regular thing to happen. The silver haired boy didn't seem too fazed by the younger's reaction after all. He just watched him with a slight grin before turning to Ten, realizing that the former gang member was speaking to him.

Kun glanced at the window before answering him. "We're flying over the city of Beijing, but of course you were too worked up and kept dozing off to really notice. Though we'll be stopping at the edge of the city, Branch V headquarters is located there." He explained, crossing his arms as he spoke. Ten nodded his head in understanding, everything slowly processing in his head. Though it suddenly hit him that he wasn't in the gang controlled city he was born into anymore. He was in an entirely different country.

"Wait Beijing? Like... Beijing, China Beijing?" Ten questioned, fumbling around with his hands. The two nodded in response, giving him questionable looks. "I... I can't speak Chinese! Sure I look the part but I won't be able to communicate with everyone else. I'll be like a lost dog in this sea of new people, how could you bring me to Beijing?!"

The teenager thought about it for a second, unsure of how to response to the boy's concerns. His eyes lit up for a quick second as he turned to Ten, a bright yet mischievous smile on his face. "That's fine, we've got you covered! You've got nothing to worry about... but I do have a question though. How do you feel about tongue and ear piercings?" Ten blinked a few times, trying to fully process what the teenager said. Tongue and ear piercings? What the hell did those have to do with him not knowing a dominant language in a new country?

"Oh look at that, we're here." Kun interrupted, pointing out the window. Ten peered through the glass, spotting a landing pad right below them. It was on the rooftop of a large corporate building that loomed over the outskirts of the city. The helicopter began to descend slowly, trying its best to line itself up with the pad below it. "This is our home sweet home! You'll call it that too once you get accustomed to everything here!" He yelled as the door to the helicopter slid open once they landed.

The blades whipped the air around them, spinning wildly as it tried to calm down. Ten glanced towards the open door to see a woman in business suit standing there, blinding smile on her face as she held a clipboard in her hand. "Welcome back Agents Kun and Yangyang! I take it that your trip to Korea and back went well, yes?" She greeted, yelling over the helicopter as she tried to make conversation with them. Ten glanced at the embroidery on the woman's blazer, noticing that it was the same symbol he saw on Kun's card.

"I never want to go back to that city again." Kun stated as he got out, walking towards a stairwell that led down inside the building. "But we did get what we came for, so hopefully that was the mission involving that place. So many people are constantly out for your blood, especially for him." The two looked back towards Ten, their expressions unreadable. The boy snorted in response as he followed after them, the teenager—Agent Yangyang he now knew—following close behind them.

The woman nodded in response to what Kun had said, leading the way into the building. "I see, I'll be sure to tell the Kingpin about your complaints. Would you like me to take the foreigner to him as well. I'll be able to easily relay both messages at once if so." She seemed pretty on top of things, multitasking must be why she was hired. Though Ten really didn't understand who this Kingpin was, or why they were speaking in a language that he could understand and still talking about him as if he couldn't hear.

"The Kingpin is basically our boss." Yangyang whispered as the group descended down the stairs. Ten slowed his pace so that he was closer to the teenager, wanting to hear what he had to say. "He's not... the nicest of people all the time. But he gets the job done at all cost. Not even his pride will stop him from completing a task. Though it's up to you to decide whether or not you think he's better than your original boss. That gangleader."

Ten let out a heavy sigh, nodding in response to the teenager's information. His former boss wasn't that bad, or at least he was okay when Ten wasn't practically a felon. Taeyong had been kind to him when he needed to be and he had at one point considered him at least close enough to become a friend of his. But clearly the boy didn't value their friendship that much when he betrayed the gang for his own benefits. He had gotten so much leeway from the gang leader despite his actions before his final action against them.

Now he was going to be facing a real boss, probably one that doesn't play around either. He didn't exactly know how to deal with men who were all work and no play. "Ah, this is where we split ways." The woman's voice rang in his ears and he zoned back into reality. They were standing at the bottom of the stairwell, assumably in the main lobby. Countless people rushed past them in formal business attire or all black with weapons strapped on their sides. 

"Please arrange a appointment for him for a tongue piercing while you take him to the Kingpin." Kun told the woman, his eyes on Ten. "He doesn't have the ability to speak Chinese as everyone else in this country. The device that's disguised as a piercing that allows people to speak the same language, that you put on Agent Lucas? I'll be asking you do the same to him." She nodded in understanding and beckoned Ten to follow after her, her heels clicking loudly on the marble floor.

"What the hell? You're going to give me a piercing without my consent?" Ten complained, grabbing Kun's wrist before he walked away. The boy looked back at him, assessing the situation before glancing at the people around them. The former gang member did as well, noticing how people walked past them whispering under their breathes and avoiding eye contact with him.

Kun slid his hand off him, smiling at him innocently. "Trust me," He began, slowly backing away from him. "Your opinion right now doesn't matter, I'm sure whatever my boss will say to you will surely change your mind. It has to, you are safer with us than you ever were there." With that the boy turned around and began walking down a long corridor. The teenager gave him an apologetic smile before skipping after Kun, waving back to him every once and awhile.

Ten huffed, standing in the middle of the crowd alone. Whatever this boss-Kingpin-man has to say to him better be good. He turned around and searched the crowd of people for the woman with the "V" embroidery on her blazer. Wandering around the area as if he was a lost child, he finally spotted her waiting in an elevator lobby with a clipboard in her hand. Ten rushed over to her before she disappeared again, not wanting to be left alone in this awfully large building he was in.

"I'll be taking you to the top floor, that's where the Kingpin's office is located." She stated as soon as he got close, pushing a button on the walls. He couldn't help but look around, distracted by his new surroundings. He almost didn't catch her walking into a vacant elevator, hastily chasing after her. Ten's eyes didn't know where to look as he stepped in, the walls being completely and utterly glass. He could see everything as they began to rise up.

"I'll be asking a few questions if you don't mind." The woman began, flipping through a few pages on her clipboard and clicking on a pen. "First off I need your full name, it is important that we know so that in the event of a accident we know who to look for or after." She told him, looking at him expectantly. Ten blinked a couple of times, unsure of how to respond to her.

"I go by Ten." He answered after a short moment. "Nothing else." The woman nodded before pausing, her pen just barely touching the paper. She must have realized he didn't actually state his full name, just a codename he's been going by since he was in the gang. Usually everyone used it if you exclude Johnny trying to using it whenever he wanted something. Which was always. Other than that, he almost never allowed people to use his real name.

She cleared her throat and turned towards him, putting on her sweetest voice yet. "I'm sorry, sir, but we need your full and real name. It's important and required for the branch to know this information." The woman bat her eyes at him, as if trying to persuade him with pure kindness to get her way. Ten only gave her a strained smile, knowing good and well that she doesn’t get paid enough for this.

“Sorry ma’am, it’s classified information. Try a different method than being simply kind to get your way.” Her smile faltered, like she wasn’t expecting Ten to answer that way. She looked as though she was going to respond to him but never got the chance. The elevator dinged as it came to a stopping point and opened up so the two could get out. Ten grinned at her as he stepped out. “Now, mind pointing me towards this Kingpin of yours? You guys make it seem like he was expecting me.”

She stood there in shock, clutching her clipboard tightly before shaking her head. “Of... course.” The woman quickly stepped out of the elevator and began speed walking down the hallway, the clicking of her heels louder and faster now. “The Kingpin should be in his office as of right now, I advise you to be as cooperative as you possible can with him. He can get a temper when disrespected.”


	5. Sign Here Please

The two walked down a long corridor, the woman's heels clicking along the marble floors once more. Ten followed after her but was a little behind, not in too much a hurry to see their boss-man at the moment. He kept distracting himself with his surroundings, trying to memorize this upstairs area as best as he could now. You never know when he might come back up here again, it didn't seem like many people got to go up here. Everything was neat and clean, shining brightly in his eyes every time the sun would hit it through the windows.

"Ah, it looks like we are here." The woman said, stopping in front of a door as she waited for him to catch up. Ten shoved his hands in his pockets and picked up the pace just slightly, making his way towards the woman as quickly as his feet desired to take him. Once he got close enough she began speaking again. "I'll alert the boss that you are here. Please wait a moment outside the his office." She didn't wait this time for Ten to respond, darting into the office as if he was a serial killer.

And thus, his eyes were left to wander again. "This guy must be loaded." Ten mumbled, looking around the area he was left in. Right above him was a sky roof, bring in all the natural sunlight and forcing him to squint just to look up. He was almost a hundred percent sure he had spotted by a garden of some sorts just ahead, but didn't bother to move towards it. He originally would have let curiosity kill the cat, but he heard voices began to from somewhere near it.

As if on cue, a trio of men in suits walked out of one corner, complaining about something as they made their way towards him. Ten turned his head the other way, keeping it low as he eavesdropped for a few seconds on their conversation. "The boss unapproved of my mission while I was in the middle of completing my task! I almost got those stolen jewels of that hags hands before the boss intervened..." And that was all he heard, his first true taste of what it was like at Branch V. He wasn't sure if he liked it anymore than he originally did, and he wasn't liking it that much in the first place.

He looked up again when he heard the door creak open, the woman's face peaking out from the inside. "The Kingpin will see you now." She opened the door even wider for him and gestured for him to walk inside. Ten slid through the door way and into the room, narrowing his eyes at everything inside. It wasn't as grand as everything else he had seen so far, really the room itself was quite empty. All there was was a desk set up in front of him and two chairs placed in front of it.

"Thank you, Assistant Zhou." A voice spoke behind a black revolving chair. Slowly the chair spun around to face Ten, and he was greeted by the head of Branch V. It was a man, any notable features he may have had before now withered away with age. Yet he looked so serious and intimidating, if Ten was any average person he'd probably tremble in the mere sight. Yet he's stared death in the face countless times, there was no way he'd be caught shaking in his boots in front of this man. "You have been excused, continue on with the appointment."

The assistant—now known as Assistant Zhou—nodded her head in response. She shut the door behind her as Ten found himself sitting back in one of the seats that had been provided. "As you know by now, I'm the boss of Branch V. I go by Kingpin to everyone else." He explained, sitting up in his chair and leaning towards Ten. "Assistant Zhou said you go by Ten, do you not? And you're from somewhere in Korea?"

Ten nodded, crossing his arms as he watched the Kingpin carefully. "Kun told me you sent him after me, right? What's with that." He questioned, not wasting any time with the man in front of him. Though a small smirk played on the man's lips, leaning backwards in his chair as if he was going to relax. He must not see Ten as much as a threat then.

"Straight to business I see. No icebreakers?" He questioned, leaning over in his chair to open a cabinet in his desk. Ten felt the hair on his neck stand, all instincts telling him to be cautious of whatever he was about to pull. He relaxed, however, when the Kingpin pulled out some documents from the cabinet. Honestly, what the hell was he expecting? A hitman here to jump out and kill him? Clearly he's spent too much time on the run from his former gang.

The Kingpin threw the documents on the desk, landing close enough to Ten so he could get the hint to take a look at it himself. "I've been having some of my agents tail you for maybe a month or two now. I found... interest in you and your skills." He spoke as the boy opened up the files handed to him. As soon as he opened it, papers and photos threatened to spill out all over the floor. It was disturbing on how it was all about... him. 

It was photographs of him on the run from his former gang, slipping into places he shouldn't be, and fighting off people when he was provoked. The papers attached to them were describing the circumstances of when each photo was taken as well. It usually gave him praise for all the minor and major things he was able to do in those situations and usually he'd be faltered. But how in the ever loving hell did they get all of these and he didn't notice a single one? "So explain how and why you got the damn paparazzi on my ass? I don't even look good in this one, I have a black eye!"

The Kingpin chuckled in response, eyeing Ten down like a hawk. "I have connections everywhere. Branch V headquarters is here, but there are many other places in the world that you can find my agents. I also paid... a friend a little visit in Korea earlier in the year who was in debt to me. He agreed to do this task in a heartbeat." He spoke. "But enough about that, I want to talk about you."

Ten felt himself hesitate, his breathing threatening to spin out of control. "I'm guessing I wasn't sent here to look at my glorious pictures was I?" He questioned, trying to regain his confidence in the situation. Yet for some reason, every time the Kingpin spoke, he felt it lower into the depths of hell. It was as if the man's very existence was a devastating blow to his ego. "What do you want from me."

"Around this time, Branch V begins to bring in new recruits." The Kingpin explained himself. "But we just don't bring in anyone. We run a business here and a special agent force. We can't have someone who is just here to sit around and do nothing. I had my men travel to Korea a few months to scope out one of the cities for people and they found your homebase, the gang controlled one."

"Now, we weren't after you at that time. We didn't know you existed." The Kingpin made sure he made that fact clear. "We had spotted a young boy in the same gang as yours who seemed very fit for the job. A talented little ravenhead he was, really. Cold, calculating, and ruthless when he wanted to be. Followed orders quickly without hesitation. Honestly I should have told Agent Kun to get him too."

It was a kick to the gut that Ten knew exactly who he was talking about. He was apart of a younger group of teens who usually only did the smaller and safer jobs for them. Yet the ravenhead he was talking about? That boy wouldn't hesitate to snap someone's neck on half when provoked. Ten quite literally couldn't even look down on him, they were the same height. Even if he could, the boy just had this murderous gaze that could cut you in half with one single glare. What was his name now? He couldn't exactly remember.

"Here's the good part though, one of my men overheard the ravenhead talking about a traitor one day. It was the best decision they had ever made and found you kicking absolute ass." The Kingpin exclaimed, looking as though he was giddy at the mere thought of it. "You exactly like the boy we were pinning after, you had a totally different flare to you. It was more refined and honed then anyone else my men had tailed after. Then Agent Kun and his men found you at their warehouse mission."

Finally, the man had stopped gloating about the other boy. Ten was getting a little tired of hearing his constant praise over someone he wasn't even the boss of. Or maybe that was just his ego taking a deep dive once more. He didn't really know. "You snuck inside that warehouse without anyone knowing and if you really wanted to, you could have probably taken out a couple of those annoying little pest that tried to take advantage of my agents."

Did no one tell this man that he could have possibly died without Agent Kun or was that a secret. If it was a secret than by all means he was going to keep it that way. "So after those instances, you decided I was the one you wanted to be apart of your little espionage?" Ten questioned, earning a vigorous nod from the Kingpin. "Why do I have a feeling you're telling me this because there's a catch."

The Kingpin chuckled. "Excellent work, you're a natural at this already." He leaned down to a cabinet again, taking something out without having Ten snoop and steal a glance. "It's simple really. I'll give you protection against the gang you're on the run from. If they find out somehow you're near Beijing, then they'll surely try and hunt you down. I'll provide all means of defense against them so they no harm will come your way."

"In return..." Ten began as the Kingpin pulled out a piece of paper and slide it towards him. He pushed aside the contents that were inside the documents, grabbing the paper and doing a quick read over. "You want me to work as a secret agent for you in Branch V." There was a line at the bottom of the paper just screaming at Ten to sign his name on the papers. "What happens if I don't agree?"

The Kingpin let out a laugh, practically mocking Ten for asking such a question. "What happens if you don't agree? We can't just have you running around with information about my secret agency, can we? I'd have my agents kill out in such a way that even death himself would have pity on you. So I advise you to sign the papers and join Branch V."


	6. Wenshien’s Deal

"Tell me, what language am I speaking now?" Kun asked, walking down the long white corridors of the Branch V building. Ten didn't respond for awhile, too focused on the pain in his mouth. After signing the contract with the Kingpin, his assistant came to seek him out again. She said he had an appointment to attended and his new boss had let him go freely. He hadn't thought about anything odd about the situation until he realized she had made the appointment for a tongue piercing.

He thought he'd be able to take it, he's been in worse situations before. Ten knew exactly what pain felt like and tried to brush aside what may or may not be when he got it. However he couldn't help but yelp during the whole process, he wasn't expecting it to hurt that much. Even though Assistant Zhou had told many people said it didn't hurt, if always depended on the person. And for Ten, it felt like he was getting shot in the mouth, not a pleasant feeling. 

After the piercing and moaning in pain for a good five minutes, the assistant brought him a small black box. Inside of it was a pair of earrings that Assistant Zhou said he could place anywhere he wanted in his ears thanks to his already many piercings there. He almost shot down the woman with his annoyed glare but didn't say anything. Ten only did as she asked and now he has helix studs in his ears with a single tongue piercing. "Well? What language am I speaking?" Kun asked him again, glancing back at him.

"English, dammit." Ten growled, feeling the stinging pain of his fresh new piercing. He wouldn't be able to speak well for a good few weeks, seeing as the wound in his tongue needed to heel after being punctured like that. He hoped that Kun would be providing him a room so that he can moan and groan about the pain into that for the next three weeks. Sounded better than talking to anyone right now anyways.

The boy turned to Ten with a grin on his face. "Wrong, I'm speaking Chinese." It took the former gang member back, almost not wanting to believe him. He was speaking Chinese? But Ten didn't understand it, nor did he know how to speak it. How come it sounded exactly like English? The Branch V agent crossed his arms as he leaned against the wall. "The piercings you received were created by some of the best technicians in the agency. They programmed the inside of them to allow anyone to speak a foreign language but sound like the language they think in to them. Neat right?"

Ten nodded, wishing he could stare at his new tongue piercing in awe. Due to him being a foreigner even when he was in Korea, he had always got asked what language he thought in. He'd always say it bold of them to even think he thinks at all but now he knows. He thinks in English, that's pretty neat. "Anyways, you filled out those documents yourself right? With all your information so that Branch V will be able to take care of you?"

Ten nodded in response and Kun pushed himself off of the wall. The two began walking down the corridor once more and the boy listened to the professional agent speak. "Good, they'll be useful in case a mission gets ugly. A few things you should know though is that Branch V usually works in squadrons. Everyone belongs to one so that missions have a higher rate of succession. Luck for you, you're going to be added to the squadron I'm over, Squadron Wenshien."

Ten's brows knitted in confusion as he spoke up. "Wenshien is a Chinese word is it not? How come it's not translating into English?" The two stopped in front of a door abruptly, the boy almost crashed into the agent. Kun only glanced at him for a quick second before looking back at the door. So where some things just not going to be explain to him? He expected that but was kinda hoping that wouldn't be the cause. It would only leave him a little more clueless than before.

He urged the boy over to a scanner of some sort, completely ignoring his question. "In Branch V we use, I guess you can say, eye readers and thumb prints to unlock everything. Thumb prints are for getting in and out of the buildings, throw the doors and such, and eye readers are for classified information you may receive." Kun explained but Ten was almost 100 percent sure this was all going over his head. He knew he should be paying attention but he was being thrown a whole lot of information his brain didn't want to catch.

"You're a new recruit, so eye readers aren't in the picture right now. So place your thumb on the scanner so it can register you into the building unless you wanna be locked out of the Wenshien dorms." Kun said and Ten quickly did as asked. He almost shoved his thumb up against the scanner and watched the screen come to life. It did multiple different scans of his thumb, making sure it got every single little detail of it at every angle. After a few minutes, the scanner beeped and Ten took his hand away.

Kun nodded in approval as the door to the dorm began to open up. "I hope you have your best personality on show. You'll be meeting the rest of the squadron now." He told Ten as he walked inside the room. He had to calm his nerves as the last time he met new people, they were supposed to be his allies for life. Now they were people who were on the hunt for his head. Ten wasn't sure if the same scenario with his former gang would happen with the squadron, but if it did he'd probably end up dying at the end of it,

"Yukhei, I hope you're at least wearing some pants you freeloader!" Kun screeched. It took him off guard for a second before walking inside the room, the door closing shut behind him. There was a few people sitting on the couch, staring at one of the rooms in the back with sly look. Only moments later did a tall, sleepy man stumbled through the doorway (with clothes on), covering his head as he walked out. Behind him was Agent Kun with a rolled up newspaper in his hands, threatening to hit the boy with it. This must have been Yukhei.

Ten rubbed his eyes a few times, almost amazed at the sight. It was the guy with the motorcycle from the warehouse! Biker boy! He had almost completely forgotten about his existence and now he was right in front of him, cowering away from Kun as if he was a child in trouble. This version of him he was seeing right now was very different from his first impression. "Your shirt is on backwards." Ten pointed out, glancing at the tag that smushed up against him.

The boy glanced down at his shirt, taking a few steps away from Kun so that he could fix his shirt. Though he didn't go without thanking Ten, giving him this awfully dorkish smile he wasn't aware that people that y'all could make. "Everyone is here now right? I have an announcement to make." Kun began, throwing an arm around Ten's shoulder. He almost snorted at the sight of the agent being so disheveled. He had put up such a serious persona before and now he just looked like stressed out mother.

They all sat up and looked towards Ten, knowing that the announcement Kun was about to make was about him. Despite their initial appearance of goofy and childish, the air became so tense that he felt like he could hardly breathe. It couldn’t help that one of the boys that sat on the couch looked like he constantly wanted to kill someone. He knew that expression all too well thanks to that one kid in his former gang. The Kingpin was talking about him earlier, what the hell was that kid’s name?

“This is our new member of the squadron. Agent Ten from Korea.” He began, making sure that the boy member made eye contact with every one of the agents in the room. “He is a former gang member, meaning he’s skilled in what he does and isn’t just some newbie that has been shoved into the squadron.” He seemed to direct that sentence towards one of the boy’s in the room who was giving Ten a somewhat noticeable glare.

They must not like the fact that he was suddenly being added as a member. If they were going out the gates with an attitude, then Ten won’t hesitate to do the same but even harder. “You already know me but,” One of the members began, running a hand through his bedhead. It was the hyperactive teen he had seen with Kun earlier, the one that told him who the Kingpin was. “Liu Yangyang, going by Agent Yangyang, the squadron’s technician and skilled hacker. Nice to meet you again.”

Ten nodded, glad at least one of them was showing a small bit of kindness. “Yeah, you too. Sorry I called you Kun’s grandkid... no one would want to be him right? You’re too nice to be related to him.” While Yangyang laughed off his joke, he could hear the agent behind him rolling up his newspaper even tighter. Depending on how much physical strength he had, the guy would probably be able to knock out Ten in one single blow. But teasing him is too much, it’s like his new favorite hobby.

Once the teenaged agent introduced himself, they all began to trickle after him. It was as if they were following his lead into this unknown territory that Ten had brought with him. He didn’t know if following after Yangyang would be the best idea out there, but that was the only way he was going to get the others to open up to him. This felt weird to him, having to pry other people open instead of the other way around. Is this how his former gang felt when they tried to get to know him?

Either way, they all seemed unique in their own way. There was Agent Xiaojun, real name Xiao Dejun, their explosives specialists and tacticians. He must have been the one who was strapped to a chair in the warehouse, and the one who set off a bomb in there as well. That entire plan must have been his, he knew how it was going to turn out. It leaves the question of whether not Agent Xiaojun had gotten himself purposefully held hostage or not...

After him was a boy named Agent Hendery, or Kunhang. He was a sniper, but most importantly a weapons specialist. Though he and the Kingpin radiated the same energy as each other, they had the feeling of power in their hands and practically reeked money. The Kingpin didn’t show it in the form of objects, but Hendery definitely did. He dressed like fake royalty, the logos expensive brands brands scattered across his clothing. Unfortunately, this was the boy who had been glaring at him before.

Agent Lucas—or Yukhei as Kun called him—was a wild card. He didn’t look like he was one for espionage at all. Though having the height advantage over literally everyone in the room, Ten’s impression of him had changed drastically. Everything he did, whether it be the little habits or his way of speech, could be viewed as childish. It surprised him when he learned that he was a frontliner and a handler, but that’s probably because he had an on and off switch from his goofy side and serious side.

The one Ten was most intrigued by beside Hendery? Agent Winwin. He didn’t get a real name from the guy and he was quiet the entire time Kun or anyone else had spoken. He didn’t show any sort of emotions during the entire conversation, no matter how hard the younger members of the squadron kept prodding at him. The only other thing that he gave out was that he a tracker, working along side Yangyang with drones. There was this odd familiarity he felt whenever Winwin spoke but he didn’t know anything else about the boy. He was a complete mystery.

“Ten will be combatant as requested by the Kingpin, and frontliner with Yukhei.” Kun began again after introductions had finally finished. His eyes scanned the older members of the squadron for anything else they might want to say. “I know how you all act, are you sure that there isn’t anything else you want to do? Because if not I’ll be showing Ten to the room he’ll be staying in.” They shared glances with each other as if talking to each other telepathically.

“Well... we can’t just accept Ten like that. The Kingpin may say he’s skilled but what if he’s not a very good fit for our team?” Dejun spoke, shrugging his shoulders as he looked at the other members. “I mean, we don’t want someone to become a liability to us do we?” Ten was taken aback, holding his anger inside of his head instead of trying to take out on them. Really? They thought he would be a liability to them?

He let a annoyed laugh escape his mouth, crossing his arms as he glared at Dejun. “Oh? I’m sorry, I don’t think I’m going to be the one who will be a liability.” Ten practically hissed at the boy, his voice leaking with acid as he spoke. “So what do you want me to do, huh? You trying to force me to prove it to you even though your boss specifically added me to your squadron?” Kun grabbed his wrist, trying to stop him from doing something he’d regret later.

“Alright then! Let’s have a competition!” Yukhei exclaimed will a little too much excitement. “You versus us in several different categories, all things we specialize in. If you can come even close to matching us, we’ll be okay with you becoming a real member of the squadron. If you don’t... you have to leave.” He explained gaining approval from everyone but Yangyang and Kun. Ten should be backing out of the boy’s deal. If he truly lost then the Kingpin will probably kill him and the squadron knew that too.

Though, Ten was never one to back down from a challenge like this one. It would boost his ego even higher than it was if he was really able to pull this off. “Alright then, biker boy.” He spoke, putting out his hand to have Yukhei shake it while a vicious grin grew on his face. “You have a deal.”


	7. Bonding time

"Time out! Time out, I said time out dammit!" Ten would have never been able to guess he was going to end up like this, pinning Hendery to the ground and holding his arm back to restrain him. The room was filled with fits of laughter and screams of joy, the feeling foreign in his chest. When he first walked into the room, he thought they were just as hardcore as his former gang was. All work and no play, business above all else. And yet here he was, play fighting with someone he only met hours ago.

The competitions had started off serious as if they were really testing him to see how well he'd fit into the squadron. But as the group continued on, it started to turn more playful and silly. If the people outside even peeked inside the room they'd think Branch V was harboring five year olds like a daycare. "I knew Hendery was weak but man, this makes you even more pathetic," Yangyang commented as the two separated, earning a punch in the arm from the said boy.

"We have made it to the final round!" Dejun yelled, earning disappointed sighs and yet eager smiles. He shrugged, leaning up against the couch as he pat Yukhei's shoulder. He gave Ten a pity glance as he began to speak, "I feel bad for you man. You're going up against brute strength. All brawn and no brain. All Yukehi has to do is sit on you and he'll win." Ten scoffed at what he said only to shrivel down in size when the boy stood up.

"I want a handicap, this isn't allowed." He hissed as his eyes traveled upwards, taking a small second to actually reach Yukhei's face. The said boy smirked in response to his complaining, cracking his knuckles like he was really going to break his bones. This shouldn't be too much of a struggle for Ten, he can handle someone as tall as Yukhei. While he had the height and strength, the former gang member had the better speed and agility of the two. Everything with goes fine as long as he couldn't keep moving on his feet. 

The rest of the group yelled in delight, grinning and screaming as they watched the two. They were most definitely rooting for Yukhei to literally manhandle him to victory. Ten only braced himself as the two got ready to make their moves, ending their friendly competition right then and there. However, they were forced to stop when Kun suddenly stood up, staring at the watch on his wrist. It kept flashing a bright red, signaling something to him that Ten didn't understand.

"Sorry to ruin the fun everyone," Kun spoke, turning the watch off and turning to go towards the door. "But Kingpin is in need of my presence." The entire room groaned in frustration, cursing things they wouldn't dare say in the man's face. It was like a group of children screaming in unison as they all tried to get him to stay, but it was to no avail. The leader of the squadron only shook them all off and opened the door. "I'll be back soon, I promise. And then we can continue, okay?"

The group mumbled in agreement as they watched Kun disappear through the door. Ten took a few glances at the door before looking back at the group he felt alone. "Well, bonding time doesn't have to end right now! It may not be me getting crushed to death by big man over there but we'll get to know each other?" He offered, trying his absolute best to continue on the cheery mood. However, it seemed the words "get to know each other" didn't appeal to some of them.

Almost immediately, Sicheng got up from the couch and left to walk into his room. Ten didn't even know that boy was even here still. He didn't laugh or crack a smile when they were doing the little competition so he just assumed he was gone. So the fact that he was just now leaving the area was wild to him. Yangyang seemed distressed when he noticed Dejun leave the room too, but couldn't stop him from leaving. Ten wouldn't have expected him to leave, he thought Dejun had liked his company.

So he was sitting on the floor of the lounge room with Yangyang, Hendery, and Yukhei. They seemed to be the only people who really cared about making him feel welcomed at this point. Which was... odd for Hendery since the first thing he did when Ten walked in was glare. He sighed once the other two were gone and looked up at the boys who were still present. "So... bonding time?"

"No, questioning time," Hendery spoke, resting his head on his hands as he stared at him. "I want to know more about you, I feel like the brief summary of you Kun gave us wasn't enough." He clarified, his eyes gleaming with eagerness as he waited for a response. He must have to wait till their leader had disappeared this entire time to interrogate him like this. Because Kun would have most definitely stopped him if he got the chance.

Ten took that as a challenge though. His life was interesting but not as interesting as whatever these agents were doing. For every question Hendery asked, he'd answer and ask the same back. He wouldn't be able to refuse to answering because Ten would have spilled his already not-so-secret secrets. "Alright then, Kunhang, hit me." He agreed, placing his hands on his knees and intently staring at the boy.

"Are you really a gang member?" Hendery asked, blinking his eyes innocently at him. "If so, what gang were you apart of? What was it like? Clearly, if you were one you've had some sort of genuine experience, but the trainees at Branch V like to lie so that they'll seem cooler and more feared by others. I need a truthful and straight up answer, don't bullshit me." He explained, wanting as many details as humanly possible.

Ten put his hand over his heart as if he just shot him. "Ouch... asking the sensitive questions already?" He asked before leaning back on the floor. "Known as NEO to the locals but NCT to our enemy gangs. Big group, a bunch of annoying people who are fiercely loyal to the leader even if you are older than him. As I said, they were annoying, and will not hesitate to snitch on your ass, even if you thought they were loyal to you." That last part was laced with as much bitterness and salt he could muster up. He was still mad about what Johnny did and would hold that grudge until he died.

He shook his head though, snapping out of his thoughts and sitting up again. "What about you, pretty boy? What were you before the whole secret agent thing? I can tell you weren't born into violence, you're softer than you'd like to admit." Ten told him, sneering at Hendery when he saw the shocked expression on his face. After his round with Hendery, it was clear he didn't really fight hand to hand much. He definitely relied on weaponry to save him more than anything.

Hendery's eyes widened, as a result, embarrassment flooding onto his face and turning it beet red. "What do you mean soft. I'm not soft. I've killed a man before, I'm a sniper for God's sake." He frowned, trying to cover up his slip up. Yangyang laughed at him, poking at him and chanting the same words that came out of Ten's mouth. Yukhei laughed along with him until the youngest member fell on top of him, which was thanks to Hendery shoving the boy away from him.

"That's where you're wrong though," Ten pointed out, snapping his fingers with a grin on his face. "You may have the ability to kill a man, but that doesn't mean you could fight him hand to hand. I know you're a sniper, Kun told me and I saw you in action. No hesitation, you pulled the trigger just like that. But if you were to fight me for real, right here right now, you wouldn't be able to win."

Hendery frowned at his statement, pushing Yangyang to the ground so that he didn't get up and start making fun of him again. "It's not my fault I don't like fighting and potentially damaging my face. I'm not like Yukhei who will jump into a crowd of random people and fight the first person he lays eyes on. Plus... guns are pretty and I can buy whatever pretty one I lay eyes on instead." Yukhei sent him a judging face while Yangyang finally escaped the older agent and started yelling.

"Hendery is loaded!" Was the first thing he screamed, shocking the said agent. He reached over to attempt to quiet him but Yangyang made sure he was far enough away to get his point across. "His family helps fund Label V, gives us money to makes more bases and weaponry. Every time his family walks in everyone goes silent because they're sparkling in their Gucci and Versace clothing. And can you believe they're even—"

"Shut up!" Hendery screeched, practically flying towards the boy and tackling him. The two fell to the ground with a thud, squirming in place as the older agent clasped his hand over the younger agent's mouth. Even when covered he could hear the insanely loud giggles coming from Yangyang, meaning he knew exactly what he was going to say instead of it being a mistake. 

The door to the dorm room suddenly opened up, revealing Kun returning from his talk with the Kingpin. Hendery and Yangyang scrabbled away from each other desperately, untangling their limbs and scooting over to different sides of the room. Ten sneered at the two before noticed there was a flash drive in Kun's hands, turning his head like a confused puppy. The leader of the squadron seemed to know notice and grinned at him. "Ten, will this be your first time in Beijing?"


	8. The Rich and The Powerful

"Now this is more my style." Ten exclaimed, leaning back into comfortable seats of the limousine. He let himself sink into the car seat's fabric as he closed his eyes, almost drifting to sleep right then and there. Despite being in a gang that could literally control all, he had never ridden inside of a limousine before. So this was a very brand new feeling for him and he liked it a lot. He almost wished he didn't have to get out.

He jolted to attention again when he felt someone punch his arm, wincing from the sudden surprise attack. Ten turned his head to see Yangyang holding out his hand to him, urging him to take what was in his palm. "You'll need it to communicate with the rest of the group. We won't all be in the same room, so it's important that you put these on and never take them out while we are here." He explained as Ten took a pair of small earpieces out of his hands.

"At this point, I'm forced to assume your hair will naturally look like a mess and I can't do anything about it," Hendery whined, pulling Yangyang back over to him. The younger agent grumbled as he covered his head, desperately trying to keep the boy from combing his brain cells out. However, Hendery forced him to sit beside him and rubbed his hands together, trying once more to fix up the technician's hair. Though the boy's disheveled and frizzy hair refused to work with him as he tried to style it in a more elegant and classy fashion to match the brand new black suits that they were wearing.

He would be lying if he said he didn't feel like a mini James Bond at the moment. Ten was riding in a nice limousine to the biggest party in Beijing, he was dressed up all suave and charming in his black suit, and was strapped with weapons. He was living the childhood dream of every little kid who ever saw a spy movie. It felt awfully too surreal to be happening if he wanted to be really honest. Yet as Ten placed the earpieces in his ears and felt the gun that was hidden safely in its holster around his leg, he knew it wasn't fake.

"Don't get too comfortable when you enter this building," Kun commented, side eying both Ten and Yukhei. He ran his fingers through his somewhat slick backed hair before his watch suddenly lit up with a blue light. "We have a mission to complete, remember that. Going back to Branch V empty hand is not an option, as this is a very pivotal mission in one of the branch's current concerns." Yukhei fiddled with the necklace in his hands, a guilty look on his face. It seems that Kun had a bit of a problem with the tall agent getting carried away in the past.

"Here's a refresher on the mission then. Our target's name is Xu Minghao, a famous CEO known for his involvement in his company's fashion division." Kun explained, swiping across his watch as he quickly skimmed through the information that had been sent to it. "One of Branch V's men had been sent to gather information on him a few months back and came back with the news that he's not as innocent as he seems. He's a make or break for one of the branch's top priorities at the moment."

"That means no harm can be done to him." Sicheng picked up, adjusting the collar of his dress shirt. "If we kill him, that means we failed the mission and have no information on what the kingpin wants from him. No matter how dirty and life threatening things may get... no one is allowed to go for the kill." Dejun groaned at the thought, knowing that his expertise in explosives couldn't be put to use in this situation. If he accidentally killed their target because of one of his explosions, they were done for. And he'd probably be fired on the spot.

Yangyang hit his back as if he was trying to cheer him up, but it wasn't really working. Before some sort of squabble could break out between the two, Kun cleared this throat. "As I was saying... there are several floors to the building we are headed towards. However, the party is being held on only three of them. We'll split up into groups of two, I'll take the liberty of being the one who is alone. Before that, I want Ten and Yukhei to scout out the rooms. Tell me how many security guards have been placed in each room. We don't want it to get messy."

"All the wealthy women will scream when they get dirt on their nice dresses and the men will growl if you step to close with no sort of respect." Yukhei mocked, probably from being in these sorts of situations so much. The group rolled their eyes at him but never did scold him for what he said. Yangyang looked at though he was tempted to join in, but was stopped by the distressed look on his face with every brush Hendery did.

The limousine slowly came to a stop, blinding lights trying to force their way into the tinted windows. "As soon as you find out the number of security in each room, report back to me immediately. If you find the target, tag him but do not come in to contact with him without my orders." Kun demanded, a frown as his face. Ten knew his words were directed at him, seeing as he was used for working alone and was the newest member of the squadron. So the boy gave him a low and annoying "yes mother" as he scouted towards the doors of the limousine.

"Take these as well," Yangyang quickly added, handing the two boys envelopes. The two took them in their hands as the younger agent smiled at them. "They'll ask for an invite before you can just enter all together. With the help of my technical knowledge, I was able to forge a decent enough fake for you two to get by. There are fake names and all, easier for you to keep your identity a secret. Now go!"

The two nodded in thanks as they both pushed on the door handle, opening it up to be greeted by those blinding lights from before. Ten covered his eyes for a second before squinting to see past the bright lights, trying to get a good feel for his surroundings. The outdoors was the building was completely packed with the wealthy, the light reflecting off of a women's shining jewelry and men's fancy watches. "This looks like a place where Kunhang would feel right at home." Ten mumbled as he opened up the envelope in his hands.

It was a fancy invitation letter, the words sparkling in gold against the black paper. His eyes traveled down the words till he landed on the name Li Yongqin, his fake name for the mission. Ten made sure he had it burned into his memory so that he wouldn't slip up and reveal his actual name by accident, even if he never mentioned his real name in the first place. "What'd you get? Yangyang decided to be a pain and just put my actual name on here." Yukhei spoke, coming up behind him and slinging an arm around him.

"What? We having some sort of competition for cool fake names or are you just jealous?" Ten asked as the two began to make their way through the crowd. The agent's words were drowned out by several different conversations all around them. It was genuinely hard to even hear his own thoughts when so many people were talking at once. Why couldn't all these people move indoors instead of loitering outside? Is that just a rich people thing he never knew of?

Either way, the two continued to push forward. Like Yangyang had said, the two were stopped at the entrance by security guards. Their invitations were checked thoroughly to make sure they were genuinely meant to be at the party before they were let inside. Ten almost couldn't resist his snicker at the guards as they verified their invitations and how easily they were tricked into believing they weren't out of place. Liu Yangyang sure is a genius when it came to forgery, he must be!

The two continued through the lobby before stopping at the elevator that would take them up to the three floors being used for the target's party. "You know you don't have to do what Kun says immediately right?" Yukhei said as the elevator doors opened up, thankfully leaving the two boys to be alone without any bystanders to overhear them. "I never do what he wants at the very beginning of missions. He's taking the fun out of the experience!"

"Are you trying to tempt me into drinking whatever expensive alcohol they have and having fun while I can?" Ten questioned, looking at him skeptically. Yukhei only smiled as he pressed the button for the first floor and two began to rise up. "Is this you trying to get me in trouble or are you being genuinely serious at the moment, Yukhei?" He questioned at the moment, watching as the agent stretched his arms and stared straight forward at the metal doors.

"I don't know, Ten, am I?" The doors opened and the first thing the boy saw was a giant chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The two agents walked in together but separated immediately. Ten caught Yukhei saunter towards a group of people, the majority woman with a few men trying their hand at swooning. His presence must have been bigger than he originally thought because the agent wasn't even close to the group before their heads snapped towards him and the woman fell absolutely head over heels for him.

Maybe this is why the squadron had specifically addressed Yukhei in the limousine because he liked to wander off and do what he wanted. Ten shrugged, that wasn't his problem now, was it? He should be more worried about the fact that his legs were leading him over to a waiter handing out glasses of champagne. One by one the glasses slowly disappeared off of the man's tray and Ten's pace kept getting faster and faster.

Before the last one could slip by him, he swiftly snatched it from the tray, twirling around with a mischievous look in his eyes. He glanced back to see a few men shocked yet annoyed by his actions and Ten turned around with a small smile. "Oh, were you eying this one? Don't worry about it, the waiter will get the apple juice for you. Let the adults drink their champagne at the big kid's table." He spoke, the words dripping from his mouth with ease. 

One man became red in the face by Ten's comment, yet all he did was take a sip from the glass and repress a laugh that tried to rise up in his throat. "It was nice meeting you gentlemen, but I really must be on my way now." He spoke as another waiter walked past him with a tray in hand, using him as a distraction to disappear into the crowd once more. Ten felt as free as a bird as he trekked through the first floor, slipping on his champagne and kissing women's hands to make their hearts flutter. 

Why in the hell did NEO never do these sorts of things? Screw Hendery, Ten was born for this life! He didn't feel out of place at all. Yet as he engrossed himself in a conversation with a few wealthy men he was tempted to pickpocket, the earpiece in his head suddenly screeched. Only he was able to hear it, which made the situation far more awkward than he liked it to be. "Yongqin, are you alright?" One of the men spoke, eloquence slipping out his mouth and confusion knitted on his face.

Ten covered his right ear where the noise was loudest, almost dropping the champagne glass in his hand. He cursed under his breath as he forced himself to pull through the suddenly deafening screeching and smiled up at the man in front of him. "If you will excuse me for a second, I just remembered there was someone I was supposed to meet." Ten lied, clumsily placing his glass on the table and rushing away as quickly as he possibly could. 

The farther away from the men he walked, the lower the screeching became. Not long after did an actual voice come from his earpiece, snorting at him. "Is Yukhei that bad of an influence? Do I need to hover over your shoulder at every turn?" Ten rolled his eyes when he recognized the voice to be Kun's. Yukhei was right, Kun did like to take the fun out of things. "Where are you? Have you spotted any security guards so far? I need my update, now."

Kun is so pushy and controlling when it came to the missions, he wouldn't have assumed this when he had first met him though. It must be like an off and on switch in his head, telling him when to be overly serious and when to be genuinely nice to everyone. "Right... right... I can spot two security guards roaming the first floor at the moment, can't tell if there are more here. You'll have to ask Yukhei if he's found anymore or seeing the same people as I am." Ten mumbled, slowly disappearing into a dark corner to get away from the crowd.

"Alright... and where is Yukhei?" Ten peered away from his dark corner and scanned as much as he could for a few seconds. Thankfully since the agent was a walking Ferris wheel, it was relatively easy to spot him. He did stick out like a sore thumb in terms of height after all. The boy took a few steps away from his little dark corner to try and figure out what he was doing and immediately regretted his actions. Yukhei really did do whatever he wanted when he was in these missions, didn't he?

"Let me guess," Dejun spoke up, pausing slightly before snapping his fingers. "He's doing the forbidden tango with some girl, isn't he? I bet he is! Ugh, this is why the kingpin has men and women separated back at headquarters... because guys like Yukhei can't keep it in his pants!" Practically every member was screaming their lungs out at Dejun, desperately trying to get him to shut up. Ten inhaled sharply before letting out a deep sigh, hoping that he'd forget everything he saw and heard as quickly as possible.

"If Yukhei gets a little too busy, I'll just go to the second floor and scout out by myself. He can join once he had his fun." Ten told them, completely leaving his hiding place and jumping right back into the coward again. he made sure to walk the complete opposite way from Yukhei, even if that meant taking linger to get to a stairwell or elevator. Yet as soon as he spun on his heel he was frozen in place, noticing a familiar face in the crowd. "Uh-oh."

"Uh-oh?" Yangyang repeated, "what's that supposed to mean?" A familiar face in a black suit turned in his direction, making direct eye contact with him. Their expression went through three different emotions in the span of two seconds. Confusion, one eyebrow raised as he looked Ten up and down. Startled, his eyes widening into full moons at the realization that it was Ten they were looking at. And finally, hostility, the mere fact that Ten was even here pissed him off, Ten has pissed Jung Jaehyun off.


	9. Confrontation

"Shit." Ten muttered, returning the same furious gaze his former ally held. He turned on his heel and practically bolted towards the nearest exit in the most natural way he could. Ten couldn't just run away in a panic, he was in public! It would be extremely suspicious of him if he started dashing away like a madman and security would be on him in a millisecond. Thankfully, this also meant that Jaehyun didn't have the ability to do anything out in the open either. If his former ally pulled out an entire real Glock public, he was guaranteed to have the cops called on him. The two were stuck in the same situation, making the party somewhat of a safe ground for both of them. 

Though how long Jaehyun decided to keep that unspoken rule was up to him. The former gang member stopped in his tracks when he felt a hand touch his shoulder, restricting his movements. Ten slowly peered behind him, making eye contact with the man as he adjusted the cuffs of his shirt. "I never would have guessed the place you escaped to would be Beijing. You seem to be surviving despite not speaking the language." He spoke, teasing him just a little bit as he reached in his pockets. Ten's eyes followed Jaehyun's hands, not trusting him one bit. This was his former ally's chance to take him out now that he was alone without Johnny. The sympathetic gang member wouldn't allow anyone to try and kill Ten while he was there.

"Why are you here?" Ten challenged, quickly smiling at a waitress that approached the two with drinks. He took a champagne glass without hesitation, he had been drinking since he got to the party after all. Jaehyun followed his lead, grabbing ahold of the glass as well. Though he heard Jaehyun scoff at his fake kindness as she walked away, rolling his eyes as he turned back to the man in question. "Aren't you supposed to be, I don't know, with NEO? Isn't the whole gang in a frenzy because of how I escaped?" Ten questioned, putting the glass up to his lips to chug the whole thing down. He'd need about fifty of those to get through the conversation without losing it.

However, Jaehyun seemed to think otherwise. Before Ten could even get a sip, he took the drink from his hands without hesitation. Discreetly placing the drink on a passing waiter's tray as he replied, "Oh they are. Taeyong is absolutely shaking with pure anger. He wanted you gone but not like this. He wanted you to die on home territory for the sake of his pride. So now the entire gang had split in search for you in Korea." Jaehyun glanced around at the sea of people, narrowing his eyes at all the rich and powerful that surrounded them. "Yet here you are in Beijing partying with people way out of your rank. It only makes me wonder how you got here..." 

"First of all, you and I both know that this is the perfect scene for me. But you haven't explained why you're here." Ten pointed out. "You just said everyone had been deployed around Korea. Why the hell are you in Beijing, China?" This was the only time Ten would be able to get answers from anyone in his former gang. All other chances he may get would be futile, as their current goal was to either capture or kill him to make him pay for his "crimes" against them. Sure, he was currently on a mission with the squadron but they could wait. He had personal goals that needed to be fulfilled. Jaehyun smirked as he placed down the other glass of alcohol he had, giving Ten his full attention.

The smirk that played on his lips put Ten on edge. Jaehyun must had something devious planned, or information that former gang member wanted. "I'm friends with the host, Xu Minghao. He invited me to his party and I decided it would be a good idea to destress myself." He explained, backing Ten into a corner with malice in his eyes. He frowned as he tried to slip past Jaehyun, desperate to escape the situation he got trapped in. Though Jaehyun purposely kept cutting him off until he had forced him back to a wall, grabbing his neck and refusing to let go. "Now I'll ask you this. Did you really think you'd escape NEO just because you got out of Korea? We've got eyes everywhere. And you've got none."

Ten grabbed Jaehyun's arm, trying to force him off. Yet his movements were hindered when the boy discreetly pulled out a weapon of his own. It was a simple black beretta, a type of pistol, of course. He placed the muzzle against his head as he held on tighter to Ten's neck. If Jaehyun knocked Ten out, whether with a bullet or choking him, he'd easily be able to take him back to Korea with Ten in his grasp. "L... let go of me." He choked out, digging his nails into Jaehyun's skin. He desperately tried to get someone's attention, if he was caught trying to kill Ten then he'd be arrested immediately. Yet they were a good ways away from the crowd, everyone who was sober wasn't going to find them.

"I've waited for this moment for quite a few months, Ten. I've gotten so sick of chasing after you like this is a game of cat and mouse. I can't wait to see what Taeyong will do to you." Jaehyun whispered, a sickening smile on his lips as he held on even tighter to his neck and pulled back on the trigger. Ten felt like his consciousness was slowly getting dragged from his body, hanging into the last string of hope that he wouldn't pass out. Yet his eyes flickered open in closed and air wasn't passing through his lungs, he was going to go unconscious at any second. He was gasping for air at this point, begging for him to let go. "You can whine all you want, Chittaphon. No one is here to save you anymore." 

"What are you doing?" The voice took both boys by surprise, neither expecting someone to interrupt. He let go of Ten to put his attention else while the boy dropped to the ground, gasping for air as he tried to regain as much energy as he could in his few seconds of freedom. Though Jaehyun quickly scooped up Ten once more, holding him in a headlock and pressing the gun to his head once more. Ten struggling in his grasp, squinting to see who so boldly tried to stop Jaehyun. Though this ever so brave "stranger" wasn't so unknown to Ten as Jaehyun may have thought they were. To his former ally, it looked as though some random bystander was trying to intervene.

There stood the quiet and composed Sicheng, him giving the two a questionable look as he processed the situation presented to him. Ten had to give it to him, Sicheng's acting skills were truly top-notch. It's as if he knew exactly why and how this scenario had occurred but was masking it underneath of the lost and horrified exterior. His eyes widened with fear and disgust, covering his mouth with his hands before yelling out. "Someone! Call security! This man is holding someone hostage! He's got a weapon on him! Yongqin, don't worry. Everything will be fine I promise." As soon as the agent described the situation in front of him, a woman screamed in pure horror.

It riled up the entire crowd that was nearby, running away and yelling for help as they tried to get to safety. Jaehyun glared daggers into Sicheng's head as the three we're slowly being surrounded by the guards that had come to the rescue. "Don't get any closer." Jaehyun threatened, pointing the gun away from Ten and onto those who were watching them. The security guard's slowly pulled out their own weapons, mentally getting ready to shoot Jaehyun down without a second thought. Yet when he placed the beretta back into Ten's temple, they all froze in place. Even Sicheng seemed to be frozen in shock.

"If you even try to shoot me, he goes down with me," Jaehyun explained, clearly running out of ideas to keep himself alive. Ten should know, the boy's ears were practically burning like a red flame. He smirked at the sight of everyone's hesitance, a chuckle left his mouth as he spoke. "That's right. Me and Yongqin," He began, bitterness seeping off his tongue as he said the fake name, "have some unfinished business to attend to. You all intervening would just make this situation harder for all of us. You don't want blood on your nice new floors do you?"

Sicheng seemed unnerved by his threats, fixing his posture as he pulled in his dress shirt. "I hope you're in position Hendery. Once I give the signal, go." His face was deadpanned as he spoke to the fellow agents, emotions that were there earlier disappeared into nothingness. When he turned back to Jaehyun, he simply held his hand out, almost urging him to drop his pistol in his hands. "We don't have to do this the hard way. Just hand Yongqin back over and we won't hurt you. That's so easy a child could do as I say." Sicheng taunted. Jaehyun clenched his teeth, sounding as though it was nails on a chalkboard. He's pissed off.

"You don't know how dangerous this man is," Jaehyun hissed, though his grip was slowly loosening on Ten. "If anything, I'm doing you a favor of taking him out with me. You really trust him?" The men that surrounded them held up their guns higher, as if daring him to even try and kill Ten off. Sicheng shook his head with a deep sigh, crossing his arms as he assessed the situation in front of him. Jaehyun was definitely serious about killing the former gang member right where he stood. He had to break a deal with him... but what would Jaehyun want that Sicheng or Branch V could give without giving away their identities as secret agents?

"Oh, Jaehyun? What a show you've put on here I see." A sudden voice spoke up, catching everyone off guard. Who was brave enough to walk towards the danger and even go as far as to involve themselves. Yet the victorious grin that played on Jaehyun's face and the distraught expression on Sicheng showed that it was clearly someone of importance. The person clapped their hands as they slid past the security, standing right in between Sicheng and Jaehyun. "You should have told me you were going to put on a performance before the party started: the guest would have loved the entertainment if it was well planned out."

It was a tall and lanky boy that stood behind them, smiling innocently as he held a folding fan in his hands, the guard golden with a dragon design on its leaves. It matched his black blazer and pants, along with the golden dress shirt he wore to bring it all together. Jaehyun opened his mouth to exclaim something, to bring the man onto his side and escape with Ten in hand. Yet he pointed his fan at Jaehyun, a menacing glare in his eyes. "You didn't discuss this little performance with me though, so I ask you to put it to an end before I do it myself." His black hair fell right in front of his eyes as if his own hair was trying to hide his murderous gaze away from everyone's eyes. 

"Shoot him," the boy said, commanding the guards as if they were his own personal army. Thought the moment the security pulled the triggers, he spoke up again. "But bring Yongqin and his friend to me on the top floor. I have to personally apologize for the inconvenience my friend had put them through. I can't let my party get ruined like this can I? It'll bring my reputation down and I've worked so hard to build it to where it is now." He told them, laughing a little as he urging Ten and Sicheng to follow him. 

Jaehyun reluctantly let Ten go, in total shock that he had been betrayed by what he made look like was his ally. "Wait— you can't do this! Killing me put you on NEO's kill list, and you don't want that do you? I'm too valuable for you to kill and we're allies nonetheless! Xu Minghao, are you listening to me? You won't get away with this!" He screamed as Sicheng, grabbed Ten's hand and pulled him out of the danger zone. They stood right beside the lanky boy, waiting for his reaction to the number of threats that were getting thrown at him.

Though Xu Minghao snapped his folding fan closed out of what seemed like annoyed. The sound it made echoing through the almost completely empty room as he turned around, a sickly sweet smile on his face. "Oh but Jaehyun," He spoke, pointing the fan at him. "You don't know how much Taeyong has wanted to get rid of you. You're no fun to him anymore, so annoying and brash about this whole missing gang member thing. I'm honestly doing him a favor. I can get away with this then, huh?" When Minghao turned back around there were several gunshots and an earsplitting scream. After that, there was silence.


	10. the infinity

"Ten, are you okay?" Sicheng asked him, turning around to check up on the former gang member. The two were standing in front of a silver elevator and the agent's hands were hovering over the button to call the elevator down so they could go up. Xu Minghao had told them it lead to the top floor, where his office was. He said that he simply wanted to personally and formally apologize for what happened, but Ten could tell he was lying through his teeth. It would be far too dangerous for the two to confront him alone, so they were waiting for the others to regroup with them.

"What?" Ten asked, silently out of it. Sicheng's face showed a hint of concern, waiting patiently for his answer. The boy quickly let out a snort, shrugging off the agent as he answered him. "Oh, I'm fine, don't worry about it. Just trying to get back into the groove. Jaehyun really threw me off there." He joked, rolling his eyes at the thought of the former ally. Sicheng seemed suspicious but took a hint either way. Ten let a half-lived laugh fall out his mouth as he tried to sell his lie as best as possible. 

If he had to be really honest, he didn't know why he was acting this way. Xu Minghao had done him a favor. He had gotten rid of the hunter that was always on his tail. Leaving Jaehyun alive with the knowledge that Ten was somewhere in China would be absolutely devastating. NEO would start a whole stakeout just to keep him confined to China, maybe even Beijing. But those what-ifs wouldn't happen now, Jaehyun was dead. So technically, Ten was free. But he didn't feel free.

In fact, he felt less than free. He felt worried... like there was a looming thunder cloud over his head. This was the first time in Ten's life that he had seen or even heard of a NEO member dying while out and about. Then again, the gang had rarely ever left Korea. They had connections that helped supply them with support while they stayed in the homeland, they barely ever needed to leave the comfort of their own city. Jaehyun's death will shake the entire gang to its core, especially because Xu Minghao was an ally of theirs.

Plus, Jaehyun wasn't wrong when he said he couldn't be killed. Just because Taeyong may have wanted to throw him away like a rag, didn't mean others wanted that to happen as well. The gang was like a very intricate family, all as closely knit together as possible. If you mess with the wrong person in the gang, you mess with a number of other people who won't hesitate to get their revenge. Jaehyun didn't just have close friends in the gang, he had connections all around the world. He was the glue that kept it all together. Killing him was basically throwing NEO and its allies into chaos. Ten was glad he wouldn't be there to see it.

"Ten, are you okay?!" A youthful panicked voice yelled, making both agents turn around. Yangyang was practically charging down the hallway at full speed, Dejun watching from behind in amusement. He's never moved so fast in his life before, and all he's ever known was the gang life. Yangyang was like a bull, once he started moving he wouldn't be able to stop unless he crashed into something. So Ten pivoted to the left as the young technician go close, moving out of the way and into the safe zone. He couldn't say the same for whoever was behind him though. There was a sudden grunt and a loud thud on the ground a few seconds after Yangyang had passed him, making Ten flinch at the noise.

Ten slowly turned around to find an annoyed Kun shoving the boy away from him, while Yangyang profoundly apologized for crashing into him. The header of the squadron let out a deep sigh as he dusted himself off, fixing the pure black suit he donned. "I'm sorry I didn't walk you through that situation," He apologized, pulling on the cuffs on his blazer as he gave Ten a quick glance. "I had sent Dejun to look for Yukhei. So I had to send Sicheng and Hendery off to find you. I couldn't just leave Yangyang alone. He's smart but can't defend himself very well. He would have become an easy target if I wasn't there to watch over him..."

"I get that don't worry," Ten told him, a smile growing on his face. Despite how harshly he had shoved Yangyang away earlier, Kun seemed genuinely concerned about him. He was the youngest of them after all, the most gullible if he had to be honest. All someone needed to do was catch the hacker off guard or offer him something he took an interest in and he was free for the taking. Of course, Ten believed he had common sense in that mind of his as well, but Yangyang was just more childish than the rest. "Besides, Sicheng got me out of my situation... somewhat."

"Yeah and now we have to get you both out of this mess." Hendery's voice echoed through the hallway as he regrouped with Yukhei at his side. The boy was carrying a sniper rifle on his shoulder, holding the grip tightly as he wiped some dirt off his face. He was dressed up all formal and nice earlier, but now the gunman was a complete mess. His hair was awfully disheveled and his blazer missing, his tie just barely hanging onto his neck. He had his white shirt sleeves rolled up to his forearm and had continuously bruises and scratches littered across his skin. "The security knows we're here. They caught me off guard while I was trying to save this guy's ass."

He shot a quick glare towards Ten, clearly dumping the blame on him. He smirked at Hendery's misfortune, finding his situation a little funny even though he had tried to save him with Sicheng. "Don't look at me, Yukhei is the one who decided to abandon me almost as soon as we walked in. If he would have stayed with me, this never would have happened." Upon mentioning the said agent's name, everyone's glares was directed towards him. The tall agent couldn't even defend himself. Not with the several lipstick markings and hickeys that on his face and neck that gave him away.

"Anyways," Kun grumble, trying to forget about Yukhei's bad habits. "You two have to meet with Xu Minghao soon. Remember, no matter what happens: you must keep him alive. If he dies, we fail this mission. I want Hendery and Dejun to go with them as a backup, but be careful." Kun advised, his words directed towards Ten and Dejun. The former gang member was the newbie on the team after all, and Dejun was very dangerous with explosives on hand. "Don't let Xu Minghao know you're there. He's expecting more than two people to come at him, I'm sure."

Kun then turned to Yangyang and Yukhei, clapping his hands together as he spoke. "You two are coming with me. I need you to hack into the building's security cameras and shut them off. Yukhei and I will fight off anyone who gets in our way to make sure you go unarmed. Are we ready?" He asked everyone, glancing around at everyone to make sure he assigned everyone a task. Though the entire squadron nodded their head, their next goal in sight just ready to be seized. A confident smile donned Kun's face as he turned around. "Then move out,"

 

 

"Be on guard," Sicheng spoke, twirling a colt pistol around his fingers with ease. "Xu Minghao is expecting us, he has the idea that we definitely aren't who we pose as. On my command, Hendery will fire a warning shot to catch him off guard. Xiaojun, be on standby just in case we need a quick escape. Ten, you know what we're going to do." The elevator dinged as soon as Sicheng placed the gun right back into the holster that was around his waist. They were on the top floor, the final destination of their mission.

Ten fiddled with the gun he was given by Dejun. The boy already had a gun on him, though Dejun seemed persistent in giving it to him. It was a taurus revolver, a few scratches, and dents scattered over the barrel. The boy relied on his knowledge of explosives quite heavily, so it seemed as though the revolver was a just a simple back up. It could only be a backup weapon if Dejun handed over to Ten so willingly. He didn't even seem concerned about defending himself, the boy probably didn't think about it.

As soon as the door slide open Hendery and Dejun slipped out first, going separate directions to cover more ground. There was a fire in their eyes, whether out of excitement or eagerness was unknown to him. But this would be Ten's first true look at how the squadron worked on the field. He had gotten a small glimpse of it when he had first met the group at the warehouse but he had gotten in the way. Now he was allied alongside them, and their skills would be benefiting him for the better. It was probably a good thing to be on the other side of Hendery's rifle anyways.

"Security cameras have been shut off," Yangyang's voice echoed in Ten's ears. He had totally forgotten he was wearing a device to help him communicate with the other members of the squadron. Sicheng nodded his head response to the young hacker's words walking forward down the hallway that was before them. It was split to look like a fork in the road, and since Hendery and Dejun had taken the other two paths they were heading straight forward. "I can only keep them off for so long, the security this guy has is very complex. Though I've got you a solid forty minutes for you to act."

"That's all we need," Sicheng responded, glancing around to look for a clock to keep the time. "It's five past eleven right now, we've got till eleven-forty five to restrain Minghao without anyone watching us. Think you're up for the challenge?" He asked, turning around to Ten for an answer. The boy snorted as a reply, not taking his question seriously. Did Sicheng not think very highly of him? Just because he was taken as a hostage once doesn't mean that he wasn't up for the job. He wouldn't be here if he wasn't up for the job.

"Please, gang-related work is harder than this," Ten answered, posting his ego as high as he possibly could. A little overconfident didn't hurt anyone, especially not Ten. He fed off of that confidence he gave himself he had to be honest. "I'll be fine, the question is will you be able to keep up with me?" Unfortunately, he didn't get a single lick of emotion from Sicheng. The agent only have Ten a quick side glance, his eyes as empty as they were before the mission started. Why did he have to hide his feelings so well? Ten at least wanted to know whether he was pushing his buttons or not!

The two stopped in front of a glass double door, though blurry to block out anyone who dared to try and spy on them. Ten took the chance to open it, holding onto the gold handle and swinging it open. There was an office desk sitting in the very middle of the room, two chairs sitting in front of it while a revolving chair sat behind it. The bigger revolving chair was faced towards the opened windows, letting it the nice breeze and showing off the stars that shone in the sky. A giant chandler hung over their heads as the crystals placed on it reflected the light all over the room.

"As I said, I'd like to formally apologize for the inconvenience of my friend earlier," a voice spoke, putting both Sicheng and Ten on guard. The chair swung around to reveal Xu Minghao in all his glory, giving the two of them a soft smile as he addressed them. He kicked his feet up on the desk and urged them to come closer and sit down with them. "Who would have known he was so brash... Usually, he's very polite and formal with all my guests whenever I invite him. It's a shame he'll never be able to redeem himself." Minghao sighed, opening the white fan in his hands.

Ten narrowed his eyes at the accessory he held onto. There was writing on the fan's leaves, something small and written in Chinese. Though due to the boy's lack of knowledge on the language, he couldn't exactly decipher what the writing said. But it was awfully familiar to him, he just couldn't figure out why. "Thank you for your kindness, Xu Minghao. I don't know what we could have done without you stepping in to save us. Honestly, I don't know why that man would have tried to harm Yongqin like that. He's innocent." Sicheng told him, trying to keep up the conversation as long as he could, 

Minghao chuckled at his words, his laugh resonating throughout the whole room. "Please, no need to thank me. I'm just protecting my guests as every good host should. Plus, my reputation as a good party host would be ruined had I let things continue the way they were," He replied, humbling himself despite Sicheng trying to put him on a pedestal. He hummed to himself for a second before he clapped his hands together, closing the folding fan in his hands. "I'll give you whatever you want as well! Please, a simple apology won't suffice for the potential trauma you've been through."

"Information," both boys spoke, catching each other off guard. Xu Minghao gave them a skeptical stare when they both replied for the same thing, his grip on the folding fan becoming slightly tighter. Sicheng snorted at Ten, slight amusement sparkling in his eyes. "Yes, we'd like a little information on someone you might be acquainted with. Tell me, do you know anyone by the name of... Wu Yifan? Or Zhang Yixing? Or maybe even a woman who goes by the Korean name of Kyulkyung?" Sicheng asked him, coming off a lot stronger than he should have.

Minghao's kind smile dropped long and hard, his eyes coming icy cold as he looked up at them through his black bangs. "Why do you want to know?" He hissed, the air turning hostile and aggressive as the seconds passed. Ten instinctively reached for the guns strapped on him, not liking where this was going. Out of the three names that Sicheng had dropped, Minghao knew at least one of them. Or at least, he was wary that they knew the information he wasn't willing to confess to. The host took his legs off of the desk, scooting his chair back and rose to his full height. "I think it's time for you to leave."

"Hendery, go!" Sicheng suddenly spoke, grabbing the back of Ten's shirt to pull him out of the way. A bullet crashed through one of the closed windows, zooming straight towards Minghao. Though the boy rolled out the way with ease, light on his feet like he was a butterfly. He smirked at the two of them, his face full of mischief and cockiness as he grabbed the folding fan, opening it up to reveal it all in its full glory. The guard of the fan suddenly sported blades as if it was a switchblade, turning what looked as though a simple accessory into a weapon. "Oh shit."

"Not to be downer boys," Minghao told them, spinning the weapon in his hands as he anticipated another attack from them. Sicheng and Ten both held their guns up, aiming them cautiously at their target as he walked towards them. Another gunshot went off, signaling Hendery trying to injure him before anything could happen. But the host only smiled viciously at them as he held the holding fan up to defend himself, completely resisting the bullet. The weapon must have been made with some sort of bulletproof material, making this fight a lot more challenging than it should be. "But I don't think I invited anyone from Branch V to my party."


End file.
